Home Sweet Home

We are finally home. We left the cabin around 10:30 or 11 yesterday morning, and arrived in our driveway at 1:56 am this morning. Whew! That was a long drive. But, the kids were amazing. They were probably better the whole day in the car, than some days at the lake. It was so nice to sleep in my own bed. So nice to sleep for seven hours. And, it was especially nice to come home without a million loads of laundry. Gotta love a cabin with a washer and dryer! Now, I need to play catch up with MNC stuff, and get ready for Jani's wedding next weekend. I also want to get the remainder of my pictures printed and finish, yes finish, my mini album from the trip. It is actually 2/3 done! Needless to say, as soon as I catch up on my Bachelorette, and Big Brother DVR stuff, I will be back with pictures of the trip, the mini, and perhaps some new kits!

Who would have thought....

I don't want to come home. I know... I know. Why the hell would anyone want to spend any more time with inlaws than they actually have to... but Mark's U-Joint went in his truck today... and I was secretly hoping it meant we would have to stay another day. That we wouldn't have to load up the boat, wouldn't have to pack, could go for a few more quad rides, lay around and read just one more book. But alas, we know somebody, who knows somebody who has a U-Joint in stock, and we can pick it up at 8:30 tomorrow morning. That sucks. Despite some really backhanded, and blatant comments about several of my skills, I really think that one more day would be a good idea.
The weather has been AMAZING.... hot hot hot every day, and the lake has been the perfect temperature for cooling off. The kids have gotten along really well, and we just met some of Grant's friends from when he was little. I have also drank pomtini's everyday, and eaten dill pickle spitz for several meals. Could it get any better?
So.... it sounds like this little vacation that I was dreading, and now don't want to end, will indeed come to an end tomorrow.... that sucks.

And the Mother of the Year Award goes to........

......................not me!
So Avery went out fishing today with Grant and Sandersons... and caught her first fish. Why did I not post a picture? Well, I didn't send a camera, and I wasn't in the boat because I was in town buying a new makeup bag. So, needless to say, Avery was stinking proud of herself, and I wasn't there to photograph it. But she did tell me all about it. The funny thing is she doesn't know about fish stories yet, so she was telling me how big her fish was, and she had her fingers about three centimeters apart. Cute.
Hopefully tomorrow I will have something better to show for my parenting than a crappy cosmetics case.
(and the reason I needed that was my favorite son dumped my new container of Manipulator into my makeup bag. I thought the vaseline was bad.... but this is sticky, and slimy, and starts to get thick when exposed to the air for a significant amount of time. Awesome.)

A Little Guy Bonding Time

Cohen and Grant got up early this morning to take advantage of the calmness of the lake. It was GLASS... it was awesome. Anyways... they went out to fish. So not my forte. But taking pictures of my two favorite men.... THAT is my forte.
This is Grant and Cohen heading back in after about an hour out on the lake.

Mmmmmm

Grant and I just got back from the yummiest supper. My MIL offered to take the kids for a couple of hours, so we headed into Burns Lake for a "hot date". It was yummy. And cheap. Who would have thought that you could get a yummy meal, a couple of drinks for each for $40!? And the best part.... we actually got some time together. We had a good talk about Grant's dad, and him growing up here. We both got a little weepy. I guess. His dad died here. I kind of forgot that. Anyhoo. It was a good night.
I hate to tell you this... but I am kind of warming up to this place. I can totally see the draw. I know I will really enjoy this place if and when we come back next summer... on our own.
And I got some color today.
And.... I also got some scrapping done today. It was a good day.

Great Day on the Lake

Today was the first really nice day here. The lake was glass, the sun was shining, and the temperature was high. This is what summer is about. So far on this vacation, I have done nothing but eat dill pickle Spitz, read, and sleep. I have slept more in the last four days, than I did all of June. Seriously. I think there is something about our altitude (or lack of it, because Grant just informed me we are higher at home...), that is making me very sleepy. Whatever. Cohen naps, and mommy naps with him. This afternoon after one such nap, Grant, the kids and I got in the boat for a little rip. We were the only boat on the lake. Seriously. And it is a huge lake. (Huge by Southern Alberta standards). So we took the kids, a few bevvys, and the camera and out we went.
Tami called today, and her, Mark and the boys are heading up tomorrow. I am really excited for that. I am really looking forward to having someone here that I can bitch to.
And..... there is a sign just down the road that leads me to believe there is a scrapbook store there. The sign reads "Get Crafty" and then says scrapbook supplies, paper, tools, magazines, and more.... What do you think?

Which "biker" is better?

So for the last couple of days we have been driving through the beautiful Rocky Mountains. Every time I go to the mountains, I am still awed by their size. When Cohen finally realized we weren't on the prairie anymore he couldn't stop saying "mounty mounty". Avery's first comment; "Wow! Aren't they humongous?" Love it.
Anyhoo, being summer and all, there are a ton of people getting to their destination on two wheels rather than four, and I don't know which one is worse, so you decide....
Choice One: The motorcyclist who, because his vehicle is narrower, decides that he can pass when it really isn't safe, drive up a closed for construction lane to get closer to the front of the stopped line, and who rides the center line.... or
Choice Two: The cyclist, who is on a bike tour, and insists on riding beside another cyclist so they can talk.... but the shoulder really only safely accomodates one cyclist, so said cyclist rides outside of the shoulder, and in the driving lane. No biggie if there is no oncoming traffic, but we seemed to find these morons whenever there was a logging truck coming at us around a precarious mountain curve.
Ah summer.

Day One

So we have started our family vacation to the cabin. We left this morning after Avery's last day of swimming lessons (which went swimmingly I might add), and acted like tourists the whole way. We stopped at the Icefields and looked at the metling glaciers. Holy shit! I remember when the Crowfoot Glacier actually had three "talons"! Very eye opening. Then on our way to Jasper we went to Athabasca Falls. (Where we had this amazing family picture taken). It was quite incredible to get that close to that much water! It was loud, and misty, and a good walk too. We went through Jasper, got a quick bite to eat, and then carried on. We are currently in a hotel in McBride, (the newest one in town, despite Avery's comment when we pulled in. I asked if she was excited to be here, and she replied with "It doesn't look like a very good hotel.")
Anyhoo, we are on our way, we will be at the cabin tomorrow. And then, no matter what, or who...... I am scrapbooking.

The Cake That Should Never Have Been

So Cohen's second birthday was officially on Sunday, but Grant was still away at work and I wasn't going to celebrate his birthday without his daddy, so, when Grant called last night to say he would be home today, I panicked and went searching for a cake that I could whip up in no time. I felt guilty just making him a "regular" cake, when Avery got a racetrack, and also a Lightning McQueen cake. I didn't want him to look back in pictures and wonder why her cakes rocked, and his sucked. So, I decided to make a cake with a picture of Nemo on it.
Sounds like a good plan, right? Well..... here are several reasons why this is the cake that should never have been.

1. I didn't have a cake mix. I am not all fancy schmancy Suzy Homemaker. I rarely make birthday cakes from scratch. But today, I didn't have a mix, so, from scratch it was. (First clue)

2. When I took the cake out of the oven, it sunk. And not just a little dip in the middle, nope. The WHOLE middle. (Second hint)

3. I put it back in the oven, and part of it miraculously resurrected itself. When it cooled, I took it out of the pan. Actually, I took part of it out of the pan. The bottom third stayed in the pan. (Do you see where I am going with this?)

4. I decided to cut it in half, and make my 9x13 cake into a 9x6 1/2 cake. Great idea??? Nope. huge chunks started to fall off the top. So... I tried to ice them back together.

5. I iced the top and two sides with blue icing, and then ran out of that color.

6. I piped in Nemo, and then realized I had no more icing bags.

7. I started in with the orange icing, (in a ziploc bag because I was out) and was about 90% done the orange when the seam on the bag burst, and a huge glob of icing landed on Nemo's bottom fin. AWESOME.....

8. I managed to somewhat recover most of the icing, and made it look almost presentable. Then Arren came over for a couple of minutes, and whilst her and I were in my scrapbook room.... Cohen did this to Nemo's head.


Sushi anyone?

Needless to say... I gave up. I finished with the white, Grant piped in a new face (and no judgement against him... but it wasn't really that great), and I didn't even bother to ice the remaining two sides that had been naked ever since I ran out of blue. Argh.

Tara..... are you proud of me?

Last week Tara and Haley came over for a very impromptu scrapbook day, and at one point during the day, Tara went into my pantry. If any of my other friends went in there, I would be fine with it.... but for some weird reason, Tara's OCD is intimidating. So.... I recently signed up with Epicure, and my shipment arrived yesterday. I was so excited, but didn't really have anywhere for it all to go. So..... it was raining, and I needed something to do, and organizing the pantry was it!
This is how it looks today....... not bad for 17 hours! Who knows how great it will look by the end of the week, but, at least for today, I know that Tara might be remotely pleased by this.....
(And if not pleased, at least a little jealous of the labels and my label maker ;) )

A Little Sumthin' Sumthin'....

or whatever....
This is a birthday card I made yesterday with the Just Jawing SU! set, and a hodgepodge of paper from Bo Bunny and Glitz . It was for a 16 year old girl, and inside was an iTunes gift card.

This layout was one I did earlier in the summer, and just found while I was trying to get organized for a day with the girls later this week. I had much higher hopes for this one. I thought the Lime Rickey BG paper would be perfect for this photo, and I really love the photo.... but it didn't turn out like the amazing layout I had in my head.....

TFL

Oh Spray Park... How I Love Thee So

(Avery redirecting Cohen back to our vicinity)

I had plans to go to the spray park in High River today, but the weather was a little uncooperative this morning, but by lunch time, Tara called, and decided she was no longer on the fence about going. She was on her way! So I packed up the kids, and off we went. When we got there it was a perfect 23 degrees. Just right for us moms, and the kids don't notice how cold the water really is once they are in it.


(This is how Cohen spends a great deal of time... drinking the non potable water. Gross.)

We were there for over three hours, and we had a great time. I love watching the kids just run. They can't escape (even though Cohen tried the last time we were there...), and they just go go go.....

(run run run)

Tara, Kacey and Kim all came and the kids had so much fun. I love that we can entertain our kids, wear them out, and get some Vitamin D all for $1 a person! Talk about cheap thrills.

(one pooped little man)

Guilty Pleasure.

Ah, you know it is really summer when Big Brother comes back on. I love that show. Why? I have no idea. I guess I like to watch drama and confrontation..... I don't have enough in my own life?
Anyhoo, for all of you who don't like BB... sorry. I will likely blog about it for the rest of the summer.
17 minutes........ I am so excited.

MNC Sweet <3 Kit

Christy gave me this Doodlebug stuff last week, and I found the new Fancy Pants Kraft line, and it goes so well together. I got creative with this one. The letters are covered with leftover sticker borders, and they are so blingy! I love it. And I also love the 'quilted heart' on the right side of the page. It took a while to do because I distressed every 1x1 square, but I really like the squares that are popped up and off center on it.
Now, if only I had some really "sweet" pictures!


TFL

Layout #90 - help please

I love this layout, but I think it is missing something. What? Does it need a title? Or journalling? It needs something, right?

Layouts #88 & #89

Holy schmoly.... It has been a month since I last posted a layout I have finished.... What the heck? What have I been doing? Apparently not scrapbooking for myself.

Whatever. I kind of like falling behind, because being caught up is not so fun. Sounds like it would be, but when you are caught up, you have nothing to scrapbook..... just saying.

So these are a couple of layouts I recently submitted for two different contests. I didn't win either. But I am okay with it. They were both sketch challenges, and I like the idea of not choosing a sketch you like, but making one chosen for you work to fit your style.When I See you Smile

This layout was for submissions for the Twisted Sketches design team. It is a neat little site where you get a sketch, but with each sketch comes a twist. This twist was to use ribbon.

Tiny Dancer

This layout was for a sketch challenge on Christy Riopel's blog. I kind of veered very far from the sketch, but I love that I used up a ton of stash stuff on this one.

OLD STUFF: Everything! For both pages!
The paper is MME (shocking), ribbon, thickers, bling, flowers, tickets, brads, acrylic frame, MME transparencies..... all of it!
Wahoo!

MNC Sneak a Peek

I have never been to the Calgary Stampede. Never. Which is sad considering I grew up only two hours away from Calgary, and now I live less than an hour away. But I have never been. I love to watch the rodeo on TV, and I am a huge fan of rides, but, I just can't convince myself that hanging out in crowds in the tens of thousands with two kids on a hot day is anyone's idea of fun. Send me without my kids, and it is a whole different story, but, alas, I am single parenting, and refuse to take them with!So, in honor of the Thursday night tradition of Sneak a Peek, I am posting a peek at a kit I just finished this morning.The suitcase is made from a sheet of grungeboard. So cool.
tfl.

10 Randoms and a HOLLA!

Okay, okay... so two weeks in a row I am late with my randoms. Shame on me..... Excuse. Nope.
So I am going to combine my 10 Randoms and my Hollas today in one post.
In honor of Canada Day, and as a tribute to the best country in the world, I will do my 10 Randoms on why Canada kicks ass.

1. We have great beer. We do. There are major and microbreweries in every corner of this country, and they make amazing pilsners, lagers, ales, and more. I didn't used to like beer. It is a hard taste to acquire, but give me a Kokanee Gold, or Sleeman's Honey Brown on a hot day, and you will have a hard time getting rid of me ;)2. Mmmmmm Taber Corn. You can't get it anywhere else. When I first moved to southern Alberta, and more specifically, Lethbridge, you have no idea how excited I was that Taber Corn wasn't just sold out of the back of a truck, but there were actually little "booths" on every corner with different farms selling their corn. I was pumped. Seriously.

3. CURLING. I love to play, watch, and then wait for winter so I can play and watch again.

4. We have kick ass music. Tragically Hip, Barenaked Ladies, Matt Good, Simple Plan, Metric, Tommy Hunter. I will always love Trag. They defined my high school and college years.

5. We have funny comedians. Russell Peters, Jeremy Hotz, Samantha Bee, Debra DeGiovanni, Seth Rogan. Hilarious.

6. Canadian Tire money. Love it.

7. Tim's. I am not a coffee drinker, but apparently the rest of the country is. I will give them credit on their bagels though. Those are yummy.

8. We have some very smart, and creative people. Canadian inventions include Insulin, the Robertson screwdriver, the pacemaker, frozen food (clearly), Trivial Pursuit, Blackberry, and the tuck in handle for beer cases (clearly).

9. Excellent children's programming when I was a child - Friendly Giant, Polka Dot Door, Mr. Dressup..... ah, those were the days.

10. Smarties. I really do like them better than M&M's. I don't care if they melt in your hand. Why are you holding on to them that long???
And now for a Holla!!!!

Carmelle - for introducing me to Aprikat. It is so yummy. Thanks girl!

Catherine - for coming over to scrapbook! Thanks girl!

My MIL - for taking Avery fishing today.